Tv toy magnavision



Aug. 26, 1969 J. cs. MORECI TV TOY MAGNAVISION Filed Sept. 6, 1966INVENTOR MOEL-C/ United States Patent 3,462,873 TV TOY MAGNAVISIONJoseph G. Moreci, San Francisco, Calif. (9 Muirwood Drive, Daly City,Calif. 94015) Filed Sept. 6, 1966, Ser. No. 577,251 Int. Cl. A63h 33/30,33/26 US. CI. 46-13 1 Claim ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This inventionrelates generally to toys for the purpose of amusing children. Morespecifically this invention relates to a toy television set.

A principal object of the present invention is to provide a toytelevision set for use by small children and which has self-containedmeans to provide the viewing of animated figures.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a TV toy havingmeans for being manually controlled by a child from the rear sidethereof for the purpose of providing visual amusement to a child locatedin front thereof.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a TV toyhaving means for adapting figures cut from newspaper comic strips andthe like to be used as animated actors in the present device.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a TV toywherein the figures are animated by means of a moveable magnet.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a TV toyhaving means for altering the background scenery so that the same may beassociated with the animated figure as preferred.

Other objects of the present invention are to provide a TV toy which issimple in design, inexpensive to manufacture, rugged in construction,easy to use and efficient in operation.

These and other objects will be readily evident upon a study of thefollowing specification and the accompanying drawing wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a front perspective view of a television toy incorporatingthe present invention;

FIGURE 2 is an exploded perspective view of the major components of thepresent invention;

FIGURE 3 is a rear elevation view of the television set;

FIGURE 4 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of FIGURE 1.

Referring now to the drawing'in detail, numeral represents a TV toymagnavision according to the present invention wherein there is acabinet housing 11 having a front side 12, a rear side 13 opposite endsides 14 and a top wall 15. A bottom wall 16 is provided having aplurality of casters 17 secured to the underside thereof.

The front side 12 is provided having a simulated sound screen 18 formedtherein and having an opening 19 defining a television viewing screen.

3,462,873 Patented Aug. 26, 1969 The top wall 15 is provided with a slot20 therein for selectively placing therewithin a depending backgroundscreen 21 upon which there may be drawn various scenery such as shown at22. The front surface of the screen 21 is preferably waxed solto providea relatively frictionfree surface.

A plurality of animated figures 23 may be formed by being cut out of thecomic sections of newspaper publications or the like, or the figures maybe other representations as preferred. Each figure 23 includes a frontpanel 24 upon which there is illustrated the pictorial detail of thefigure, a rear panel 25 which is adhered to the rear side of the frontpanel 24 and which is provided having a space therebetween for sealingtherewithin a flat steel strip 26 which is approximately of theconfiguration of a safety-razor blade.

The front side 12 is additionally provided with a plurality of simulatedtelevision control knobs 27 as shown in FIGURE 1 of the drawing.

The rear side 13 of the cabinet is provided with an access door 28 whichis pivotally mounted upon hinges 29 and secured in a locked position bymeans of a latch 30. An opening 31 is provided in the door 28 forpurpose of receiving therein a control stick 32 which is comprised of apermanent magnet 33 mounted on the end of a wooden barrel 34.

In operative use a selected background scene 21 is dropped through theslot 20 in the top wall 15 of the cabinet and the animated figureselected is placed against the front side of the screen 21. It is to benoted that the rear side of the rear panel 25 of the animated figure islikewise waxed so as to provide a relatively friction-free surface,thereby permitting easy movement of the figure across the screen. Thecontrol stick is inserted through the opening 31 and the magnet 33 isplaced adjacent the rear side of the screen 21 so as to attracttherethrough the steel strip 26 contained within the animated figure 23.By rotating the barrel 34 or otherwise moving it laterally orvertically, the figure 23 is thus carried along therewith due to themagnetism. Thus to the observer the figure 23 appears to move withoutexternal controls across the screen 21, thus providing an amusing scene.Obviously, if preferred the child controlling the device may likewisespeak from the rear side of the cabinet to provide conversation beingconducted by the animated figures. If preferred the cabinet may be madeso that the child can throw his voice through an opening into theinterior of the cabinet so that the same may be moved forwardly out ofthe speaker opening 18.

As shown in FIGURE 4 of the drawing, it is to be noted that there is aspace between a rear side of the front side 12 and the front side of thebackground screen 21, the space being utilized for the purpose ofintroducing the figures from within the cabinet interior upon thescreen. Thus a figure may be shown to walk-on into the viewing area,this being accomplished merely by inserting the figure from a side into,the space between the front side and background screen and drawing himinto the center of the viewing area by means of the control stick. Thisis of course made possible by the fact that sufficient space is providedon each side of the opening 19 because the areas are free of anymechanisms, the sound screen 18 having no speaker therebehind and thesimulated control knobs 27 having nothing at the rear thereof. Suchmethod of introducing as well as removing a character from the viewingarea is more preferred than for an operator to reach upon the front sideof the background screen and manually place a figure thereupon. Thus theillusion effect is greater.

I claim:

1. In a toy television set, the combination of a cabinet,

said cabinet having a front side, a rear side, opposite end sides, a topwall and bottom wall, said sides and Walls enclosing a centralcompartment, means for said cabinet to selectively receive a backgroundscreen, means for said cabinet to project sound forwardly from a childat a rear of said cabinet, and means for one or more animated figures tobe moved across said background screen, said top wall having a slottherein, a plurality of screens having each a picture of a differentbackground, one of said screens being selectively received within saidopening, an opening on the said front side of said cabinet, said openingon the said front side defining a viewing opening, said backgroundscreen being framed within said opening on said front side, a speakeropening on the said front side, and said animated figures being movableacross the front side of said background screen, said background screenbeing in spaced relation rearward of said front side of said cabinet soto form a space therebetween, said space providing a means forintroduction of said figures from within said cabinet upon the frontside of said background screen, each of said animated figures comprisinga front panel having a picture of a figure on its front side, a rearpanel on the rear side of said front panel, a space therebetween, a fiatsheet of steel strip within said space,

said steel strip providing a means for animating said figure, the lowerside of said cabinet including a door pivotally secured by hinges tosaid rear side and secured thereto by means of a latch, a circularopening through said door, a control stick received through said openingin said door, said control stick comprising a permanent magnet at oneend of a wooden rod, said magnet being slidable along the rear side ofsaid background screen for purpose of moving laterally or verticallysaid figu e placed against the front side of said screen, and the rearside of said figure and the front side of said screen being waxed.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,123,066 12/1914 Barber 272-112,637,138 5/1953 Doran 4613 3,229,411 1/1966 Fosser 46-13 LOUIS G.MANCENE, Primary Examiner C. R. WENTZEL, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R.

